Norwegian Breakaway Offers a Range of Cabins

Norwegian Breakaway Offers a Range of Cabins

On the Norwegian Breakaway there are accommodations to suit just about every type of passengerBy: Marilyn Green

Cruise
The Haven has its own pool courtyard. // © 2013 Norwegian Cruise Line

The Haven has its own pool courtyard. // © 2013 Norwegian Cruise Line

Norwegian Breakaway, the new ship from Norwegian Cruise Line that features a New York City theme, is very much like the city itself when it comes to accommodations. Just like New York, the ship features a wide range of living arrangements that run from economical studios to luxurious staterooms boasting fabulous views.

The Haven
Breakaway’s Haven — with its 24-hour service from butlers trained by the International Institutes of Modern Butlers — follows the luxury enclave pattern of the previous ships, providing exclusivity and luxury with access to the bells and whistles of a large vessel. Passengers can choose to dine in their suites, served by their butlers, and call upon them for a variety of other services. The Haven’s private pool has a dedicated valet to cater to guests’ wishes, and there is a private fitness area and hot tub in the private courtyard as well. Haven guests also receive priority reservations in the ship’s specialty restaurants, as well as priority in the spa and at shows.

On a recent sailing, agents onboard Breakaway were particularly impressed by the Haven Spa Suite With Balcony, with its king-size bed, hot tub and oversize waterfall shower. Occupants have complimentary access to the thermal spa suite with 13 heated loungers, a sauna, a steam room, a solarium, a vitality pool and whirlpools at the 23,000-square-foot Mandara Spa. Outside The Haven’s confines but with access to the amenities, the spa suites run 309 square feet and are designed for two people. There was also considerable praise for the four Haven Deluxe Owner’s Suites With Large Balcony. These 932-square-foot rooms sleep up to four people and feature gorgeous ocean views, a wet bar and a large wraparound balcony, as well as a bath and a half.

Meanwhile, the Haven Aft-Facing Penthouses With Large Balcony have king-size beds and very attractive dining and sitting areas, along with access to the Haven’s features. At 655 to 824 square feet, they accommodate up to four guests. Within The Haven itself, Haven Courtyard Penthouses With Balcony include a king-size bed and a private balcony with a beautiful view; up to three guests can share, although generally two people book these 328- to 349-square-foot accommodations.

Family Accommodations
For families of up to six people, The Haven’s Two-Bedroom Family Villa With Balcony has a bedroom with a king-size bed and a second one with a double sofa bed, plus two bathrooms, with a total of 535 to 545 square feet of space. Another option: Four or five family members can be accommodated in the 218-square-foot Family Oceanview Stateroom With Large Picture Window. Most of these have a bathtub (there are no bathtubs in staterooms 5138, 5140, 5738 and 5740), and a number of them offer connecting rooms, providing options for dividing up family groups.

The 239-square-foot Family Mini-Suites With Balcony on Deck 12 sleep up to four and are located close to kids’ activities. In these rooms, the two lower beds convert to a king-size bed, and there’s an upper bed, sofa bed and bathtub.

Also located near the kids’ programs and aimed at families seeking maximum value, 135-square-foot Family Inside staterooms sleep up to four, with two lower beds that convert to a queen-size bed and two pull-down beds in a very snug living space.

At the same size, the mid-ship and fore and aft Inside Staterooms each has two lower beds that convert to a queen-size. The Studios on Decks 10 and 11 are another sort of inside stateroom — designed for just one passenger without charging a single supplement — and each have their own private lounge where singles can mingle. This restricted-access complex is made up of 100-square-foot rooms with a full-size bed and bathroom and one-way windows that face the corridor.

Staterooms on Breakaway have a number of thoughtful touches, including storage space and good-size bathrooms with showers that have sliding doors, not curtains.

New Yorkers have a particular view of space, and, as agents explored Breakaway, more than a few of them commented: “This is bigger than my whole apartment.”

Not something one often hears on a cruise ship.

Continuing its sailings roundtrip out of New York, Breakaway moves from Bermuda to seven-day Bahamas and Florida cruises at the beginning of October.

Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Azamara to run as separate businesses

Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Azamara to run as separate businesses

By Lucy Huxley

Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Azamara to run as separate businessesRCL Cruises Ltd is to create three individual businesses for each of its brands in the UK, claiming they have each now grown to a size that warrants “increased focus and investment”.

The new structure, which will take effect from January 1, 2014, will see current associate vice president & general manager Jo Rzmowska become managing director for Celebrity Cruises. A recruitment process is already underway both internally and externally for separate managing directors for the Royal Caribbean and Azamara Club Cruises brands.

Each individual managing director will also get his or her own commercial, marketing and sales teams, as well as separate agent trainers and trade marketing budgets.

But the proposed structural and operational changes also include the consolidation of guest and trade call centres around the world – including the UK and Ireland team based in Addlestone in Surrey – into just three multi-lingual contact centres in Guatemala, Romania and the Netherlands, operated by an external partner, Xerox.

Under the proposal, the Royal Caribbean International and Azamara Club Cruises UK and Ireland guest and trade service call centres would be operated from Guatemala, resulting in the potential redundancy of 100 people. A period of consultation with potentially affected employees in Addlestone has begun today.

A Celebrity Cruises guest and trade services team, dedicated to the UK and Ireland, will be set up in the UK, employing 50 people.

Dominic Paul, who remains as vice president and managing director of Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said the proposed restructure was an important milestone in the history of the global RCL Cruises Ltd business:

“The only other market that we have this kind of focus is North America. This is the first time we have given any other market such attention. We have seen that when a market gets to a certain size of importance, this is the structure that works best to grow.

“The UK is the second-largest market globally and this move is a recognition of the growth achieved so far and to best position each cruise line for future development and growth.”

The three RCL brands collectively in the UK and Ireland have seen 8% growth in the last five years versus the overall cruise market in the UK and Ireland which has grown at 3% in the same period.

Asked if it meant the company, which is the second largest cruise operator in the world, would deploy more than the current five ships to the UK as a result of the restructure, Paul said: “This underlines our commitment to the UK market. We are investing in the brands and see the future potential for more growth. We hope that this will mean we can bring new ships into this market.”

The company said the partnership with Xerox would allow it to address efficiency challenges that are common in any business that has experienced rapid global expansion.

“As a renowned leader in this area, Xerox supplies the contact centres of many customer service focused brands globally. This proposal follows an extensive global review specifically looking at the operational efficiency of multiple guest and trade service centres around the world,” a statement said.

“All of the proposed changes are being reviewed in order to best position the business for future growth, whilst maintaining a competitive edge and strong customer service for trade partners and guests.”

Rzymowska said of her new position: “I am very passionate about all three of our brands, but the Celebrity role is the opportunity that I have been asked to look at and I am very happy with that.”

She described the search for her counterparts on the Royal Caribbean International and Azamara Club Cruises brands as “significant” because they are such “key roles going forward”.

And commenting on the creation of separate teams below them, she added: “There will be opportunities for the [current] team.”

Rzymowska said agents could expect to see more attention paid to them under the new structure.

“Everybody is in business to run a profitable business. And we believe that the trade seeing more of us, and us being able to give them more focused, dedicated time and more investment, will result in increased profitability for them.”

Rzymowska added: “Changes made earlier this year to the commissions structure are working for the business. There are currently no plans to make any changes to the base commission structures of Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises, including when the dedicated brand teams take effect in January 2014.”

Cruise ships could be barred from central Venice

Cruise ships could be barred from central Venice

By Phil Davies

Cruise ships could be barred from central Venice
Image via Shutterstock
Cruise ships face the threat of being banned from Venice following a crackdown on water traffic after the death of a German tourist two weeks ago.The new proposals have been suggested by Italy’s environment minister Andrea Orlando.

He told the Italian daily Il Gazettino: “There will always be a margin of risk and even that margin is too high a risk.

“The problem is not just the presence of large ships in St Marks basin but in general the presence of ships in the lagoon.”

He expected a “concrete response that could be translated into immediate action”, as the problem is getting worse all the time, he said.

“The number of cruise ships passing in front of St Marks’s Cathedral has grown by seven per cent this year alone.”

Orlando said he would put the proposals in front of cross party parliamentary committee next month, according to the Daily Mail.

His comments follow the death of Joachim Vogel, 50, a professor of criminal law, who was crushed against a dock by a reversing water bus as he took a tour with his family by gondola near the Rialto Bridge.

The mayor of Venice reportedly wants to see cruise ships dock at Porto Marghera. Other suggestions have included a floating off-shore port.

Alternative solutions would see the number of cruise ships allowed to enter the lagoon severely limited, or the dredging of a new approach to the main cruise passenger terminal but avoiding the channel which passes St Marks Square.

The proposals would essentially put in action emergency legislation drafted after the Costa Concordia tragedy that would prevent ships of more than 500 tonnes coming within two nautical miles of landscapes of value such as the Venice lagoon or fragile environments such as the marine sanctuary between Sardinia and north-east Italy, the newspaper reported.